China hasn’t been honoring a 2015 anti-espionage deal, an NSA official said.
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A National Security Agency official reportedly said China has been violating a 2015 agreement to stop cyber espionage between it and the US.
The agency’s Rob Joyce, who advised President Donald Trump on homeland security earlier this year, aired his suspicions Thursday, according to Reuters. However, he noted that the quantity of attacks had dropped “dramatically” since the 2015 agreement between then-President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
“While it’s not black and white, [China] met the agreement or they didn’t meet the agreement, it’s clear that they are well beyond the bounds today of the agreement that was forged between our countries,” Joyce told Reuters.
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China said it “firmly opposes” the allegations, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying reportedly told a daily news briefing.
Last month, China responded to a report that Trump’s personal iPhone had been tapped by its spies by suggesting that he switch to Huawei. The president’s relationship with China has been tense since the US entered a trade war with China. A report alleged Chinese surveillance microchips had been inserted into Apple and Amazon data center equipment during the manufacturing process, prompting China and the companies to issue firm denials.
In August, researchers said they found Chinese hackers targeting the Alaskan state government, as well as the state’s Department of Natural Resources and utilities companies, as its leaders went to China to discuss trade deals.
Neither the NSA nor the Chinese Foreign Ministry immediately responded to requests for further comment about Joyce’s allegations.